Let's learn about Judaism series! 1: Passover

It seems many faith and religious threads on ATS deal with debating creation and evolution. I believe we have heard enough of that. For fun I decided to start a series where we learn about Judaism and Jewish tradition. As I learn about my faith you can join along for the ride and see what Judaism is all about and then some. I will spice it up with adding outside sources and answering questions. A new thread will be posted every Thursday. Before the Sabbath. Since this is a start. Let's talk about a special tradition in the Jewish faith and with other faiths as well. Passover! Ultimate Passover information
Let us start with the basic story of Passover and continue from there. Chabad Source
What Is Passover? The holiday’s history and observances:

The eight-day festival of Passover is celebrated in the early spring, from the 15th through the 22nd of the Hebrew month of Nissan. It commemorates the emancipation of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt. And, by following the rituals of Passover, we have the ability to relive and experience the true freedom that our ancestors gained.

The Story in a Nutshell:After many decades of slavery to the Egyptian pharaohs, during which time the Israelites were subjected to backbreaking labor and unbearable horrors, G‑d saw the people’s distress and sent Moses to Pharaoh with a message: “Send forth My people, so that they may serve Me.” But despite numerous warnings, Pharaoh refused to heed G‑d’s command. G‑d then sent upon Egypt ten devastating plagues, afflicting them and destroying everything from their livestock to their crops.

At the stroke of midnight of 15 Nissan in the year 2448 from creation (1313 BCE), G‑d visited the last of the ten plagues on the Egyptians, killing all their firstborn. While doing so, G‑d spared the Children of Israel, “passing over” their homes—hence the name of the holiday. Pharaoh’s resistance was broken, and he virtually chased his former slaves out of the land. The Israelites left in such a hurry, in fact, that the bread they baked as provisions for the way did not have time to rise. Six hundred thousand adult males, plus many more women and children, left Egypt on that day, and began the trek to Mount Sinai and their birth as G‑d’s chosen people.
(Click here for full story of Passover)
How is Passover celebated today?

What Is Passover? The holiday’s history and observances The eight-day festival of Passover is celebrated in the early spring, from the 15th through the 22nd of the Hebrew month of Nissan. It commemorates the emancipation of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt. And, by following the rituals of Passover, we have the ability to relive and experience the true freedom that our ancestors gained. The Story in a Nutshell After many decades of slavery to the Egyptian pharaohs, during which time the Israelites were subjected to backbreaking labor and unbearable horrors, G‑d saw the people’s distress and sent Moses to Pharaoh with a message: “Send forth My people, so that they may serve Me.” But despite numerous warnings, Pharaoh refused to heed G‑d’s command. G‑d then sent upon Egypt ten devastating plagues, afflicting them and destroying everything from their livestock to their crops. At the stroke of midnight of 15 Nissan in the year 2448 from creation (1313 BCE), G‑d visited the last of the ten plagues on the Egyptians, killing all their firstborn. While doing so, G‑d spared the Children of Israel, “passing over” their homes—hence the name of the holiday. Pharaoh’s resistance was broken, and he virtually chased his former slaves out of the land. The Israelites left in such a hurry, in fact, that the bread they baked as provisions for the way did not have time to rise. Six hundred thousand adult males, plus many more women and children, left Egypt on that day, and began the trek to Mount Sinai and their birth as G‑d’s chosen people. Click here for the full Passover story. Passover Observances Passover is divided into two parts: The first two days and last two days (the latter commemorating the splitting of the Red Sea) are full-fledged holidays. Holiday candles are lit at night, and kiddush and sumptuous holiday meals are enjoyed on both nights and days. We don’t go to work, drive, write or switch on or off electric devices. We are permitted to cook and to carry outdoors (click here for the details). The middle four days are called chol hamoed, semi-festive “intermediate days,” when most forms of work are permitted.

NO CHAMETZ To commemorate the unleavened bread that the Israelites ate when they left Egypt, we don’t eat—or even retain in our possession—any chametz from midday of the day before Passover until the conclusion of the holiday. Chametz means leavened grain—any food or drink that contains even a trace of wheat, barley, rye, oats, spelt or their derivatives, and which wasn’t guarded from leavening or fermentation. This includes bread, cake, cookies, cereal, pasta and most alcoholic beverages. Moreover, almost any processed food or drink can be assumed to be chametz unless certified otherwise. Ridding our homes of chametz is an intensive process. It involves a full-out spring-cleaning search-and-destroy mission during the weeks before Passover, and culminates with a ceremonial search for chametz on the night before Passover, and then a burning of the chametz ceremony on the morning before the holiday. Chametz that cannot be disposed of can be sold to a non-Jew for the duration of the holiday.

MATZAH Instead of chametz, we eat matzah—flat unleavened bread. It is a mitzvah to partake of matzah on the two Seder nights (see below for more on this), and during the rest of the holiday it is optional.THE SEDERS

The highlight of Passover is the Seder, observed on each of the first two nights of the holiday. The Seder is a fifteen-step family-oriented tradition and ritual-packed feast.

The focal points of the Seder are:

Eating matzah.
Eating bitter herbs—to commemorate the bitter slavery endured by the Israelites.
Drinking four cups of wine or grape juice—a royal drink to celebrate our newfound freedom.
The recitation of the Haggadah, a liturgy that describes in detail the story of the Exodus from Egypt. The Haggadah is the fulfillment of the biblical obligation to recount to our children the story of the Exodus on the night of Passover.

More information

Hopefully this gives a good summery for Passover. I'm never good at generalizing anything. I always use detail but I can ramble on and on! Tell me if the information is useful and if I missed anything or you have any questions. I will help you guys!

Another Judaism thread in 5 minutes? Where did the other one go?

Dude: We Jews were abused, not by the Egyptians - but by God. Can't you see it? Even if you believe the story to the letter, we AND the Egyptians got screwed badly from the deal.

God killed many innocent Egyptians, and who got the blame throughout history? The Jews.

Where was God when the Jewish people needed him? - you don't want me to list the Jewish-hunting events of every generation right?

If God was so powerful, why didn't he just make peace between the people? Why the massacres?

[as an ATSer - I have some answers to all these questions, and they obviously involve the ancient astronaut theory]

Cheers

arit

reply to post by arit_


This is the only thread about Judaism I started and the only one I have seen today. I believe Jews need to be faithful to G-d and do whatever he want's us to do. Yes, it's difficult but we must have patience.

reply to post by FeraVerto


I have been sudying the jewish roots of my faith.
The Messianic synagogue that I attend has already
invited me and my husband to the passover seder.
I am a gentile believer of Yeshua HaMashiach.
Jews and gentiles one in Messiah!

reply to post by mamabeth


I would like to keep the threads on subject. But I will email you an answer in a bit.

Christ talked about scoffers. 2 Peter 3:3 "First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires."

God has only asked one thing of Israel. He asked them to reflect his light to the nations. When Israel has done this, they are blessed. When they have failed to bear the good fruit of the fig tree, they were punished.

Christ arrived on the scene and made a few predictions about the generation that witnesses Israel become a nation in a future time. He said,

Luke 21:29-32 29 He told them a parable. "See the fig tree, and all the trees. When they are already budding, you see it and know by your own selves that the summer is already near. Even so you also, when you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near. Most assuredly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things are accomplished."

In 1948, the fig tree became a nation. It began to bud. What does this mean?

When Christ arrived and saw that they had not produced fruit, He cursed the fig tree.

Matthew 11:12
"The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard him say it."

Then, we read in Romans 11 that Christ will graft in the Gentile nations into the main root. A new tree emerges that is capable of bearing its own fruit. This is comparable to the fig tree bearing fruit without the help of the fig wasp. It has transitioned from a domesticated fig tree to a Parthenocarpic fig tree. Propagated from the cuttings of other fig trees, a parthenocarpic fig tree is capable of spontaneous reproduction, without the aid of the fig wasp.

If you go back and read Matthew 24, you see the signs that accompany this generation. The generation born in 1948 is now 63 years old. It's nearly the end. Day and hour is up for debate.

The question is, will the passover lamb see fruit this time around?

Originally posted by arit_
Another Judaism thread in 5 minutes? Where did the other one go?

Dude: We Jews were abused, not by the Egyptians - but by God. Can't you see it? Even if you believe the story to the letter, we AND the Egyptians got screwed badly from the deal.

God killed many innocent Egyptians, and who got the blame throughout history? The Jews.

Where was God when the Jewish people needed him? - you don't want me to list the Jewish-hunting events of every generation right?

If God was so powerful, why didn't he just make peace between the people? Why the massacres?

[as an ATSer - I have some answers to all these questions, and they obviously involve the ancient astronaut theory]

Cheers

arit

reply to post by SuperiorEd


I already mentioned I would like to keep this thread about Passover. Nothing else. Since you mentioned already I would like to put my 2 cents in for this. This deals with Jesus and the Passover. How the two are not connected in anyway or shape or forum.

Christians often draw a comparison between the Paschal lamb and Jesus, insisting that the former foreshadows the latter. This idea is advanced in the New Testament, particularly in the Book of John, where Jesus is portrayed as the fulfillment of the Passover lamb. Yet how valid a point is this? What is the meaning of this holiday sacrifice? The Bible relates in Exodus 12:3-13 that when the Jewish people were preparing themselves for their momentous exodus from Egypt, God commanded them to slaughter a year-old sheep or goat on the 14th day of the first month (Nissan) and to publicly place its blood on the outside doorposts of their homes. Because Christians insist that the blood of the Paschal lamb foreshadowed the atonement of the blood of Jesus at Calvary, it behooves us to question the soundness of this claim. The Torah never states or even implies that the Passover sheep or goat atones for sin. The notion that the Paschal lamb is a representation of a crucified savior or an atonement for sin is as foreign to the teachings of the Torah as is the notion of Santa Claus. A mindful study of the Jewish scriptures reveals that the Torah had alluded to the Paschal lamb long before the exodus from Egypt occurred. Centuries earlier, the Almighty tested Abraham's faith when God commanded him to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac. Genesis 22:7-8 relates that as the two ascended Mount Moriah together, Isaac turned to his father and asked, "Here is the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the offering?" Abraham then replied, "God will see to a lamb for an offering, my son." The question that immediately comes to mind is, what happened to that lamb that Abraham promised? A few verses later we find that it was a ram, not a lamb, which was sacrificed! Where was the lamb to which Abraham was prophetically referring? The answer of course is that our father Abraham was referring to the Paschal lamb. Just as God tested Abraham's faith to show his worthiness to be the father of the chosen people, the young Jewish nation also had to have their faith tested to show their worthiness to participate in the exodus from Egypt, to receive the Torah at Mount Sinai, and to become the progenitors of the covenant people who would forever be known as "a light to the nations." In the pagan Egyptian society where the Jewish people were enslaved, the lamb was considered a sacred god, similar to how the cow is deified and worshiped in India today. In ancient Egypt, molesting a lamb in any way was considered a crime punishable by death. That is why, when Egypt was overcome with the third plague of lice, Moses refused Pharaoh's initial offer that the Jews bring their sacrifice to God while remaining in Egypt. In Exodus 8:26, Moses explained to Pharaoh that if the Israelites were to kill these animals before the Egyptians, they would be stoned to death. The Almighty, therefore, used this to test the faithfulness of the Jewish people by commanding them to not only kill Egypt's sacred god, but also to publicly place the lamb's blood on their doorposts for all to see. Only those Israelites who, like Abraham, demonstrated that their fear of God exceeded their fear of the Egyptians, would be deemed worthy to have their homes passed over during the tenth and final plague.

Source
I didn't want to but I had too!

reply to post by SuperiorEd


I have seen that video many times before. Still I'm not conceived Jesus is the Messiah. It is like telling an Atheist I should be a Christian because this Atheist became a Christian. We'll always continue to hit a stalemate on what Jesus is or not. So, it is no point in arguing.

reply to post by FeraVerto


I haven't even read your whole post yet, but just the first line had me saying amen, plus I am going to a Passover Seder for the first time this Saturday, we are having a some kind of special walk and two different kind of meals . now I am going to read your post, and hoping that i can learn something, so i will have more understanding come Saturday.SnF

reply to post by infojunkie2


Thanks for keeping this thread on topic. Christians really want to make this about Jesus anyway they can. Sorry, but it's annoying!

I think it is worth mentioning one thing here. I will not bother you again about it. God leaves a revelation every 2000 years to his people. Did he skip you 2000 years ago? If not, then Matthew 24 is it. The rest of the new testament is it. Romans 11 is the grafting of the world to the root, which is God and his Word (Christ).

Romans 11:25

For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.

Habakkuk
17 Though the fig tree may not blossom,
Nor fruit be on the vines;
Though the labor of the olive may fail,
And the fields yield no food;
Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
And there be no herd in the stalls—
18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD,
I will joy in the God of my salvation.
19 The LORD God [c] is my strength;
He will make my feet like deer’s feet,
And He will make me walk on my high hills.

Originally posted by FeraVerto
reply to post by SuperiorEd

 

I already mentioned I would like to keep this thread about Passover. Nothing else. Since you mentioned already I would like to put my 2 cents in for this. This deals with Jesus and the Passover. How the two are not connected in anyway or shape or forum.

Christians often draw a comparison between the Paschal lamb and Jesus, insisting that the former foreshadows the latter. This idea is advanced in the New Testament, particularly in the Book of John, where Jesus is portrayed as the fulfillment of the Passover lamb. Yet how valid a point is this? What is the meaning of this holiday sacrifice? The Bible relates in Exodus 12:3-13 that when the Jewish people were preparing themselves for their momentous exodus from Egypt, God commanded them to slaughter a year-old sheep or goat on the 14th day of the first month (Nissan) and to publicly place its blood on the outside doorposts of their homes. Because Christians insist that the blood of the Paschal lamb foreshadowed the atonement of the blood of Jesus at Calvary, it behooves us to question the soundness of this claim. The Torah never states or even implies that the Passover sheep or goat atones for sin. The notion that the Paschal lamb is a representation of a crucified savior or an atonement for sin is as foreign to the teachings of the Torah as is the notion of Santa Claus. A mindful study of the Jewish scriptures reveals that the Torah had alluded to the Paschal lamb long before the exodus from Egypt occurred. Centuries earlier, the Almighty tested Abraham's faith when God commanded him to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac. Genesis 22:7-8 relates that as the two ascended Mount Moriah together, Isaac turned to his father and asked, "Here is the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the offering?" Abraham then replied, "God will see to a lamb for an offering, my son." The question that immediately comes to mind is, what happened to that lamb that Abraham promised? A few verses later we find that it was a ram, not a lamb, which was sacrificed! Where was the lamb to which Abraham was prophetically referring? The answer of course is that our father Abraham was referring to the Paschal lamb. Just as God tested Abraham's faith to show his worthiness to be the father of the chosen people, the young Jewish nation also had to have their faith tested to show their worthiness to participate in the exodus from Egypt, to receive the Torah at Mount Sinai, and to become the progenitors of the covenant people who would forever be known as "a light to the nations." In the pagan Egyptian society where the Jewish people were enslaved, the lamb was considered a sacred god, similar to how the cow is deified and worshiped in India today. In ancient Egypt, molesting a lamb in any way was considered a crime punishable by death. That is why, when Egypt was overcome with the third plague of lice, Moses refused Pharaoh's initial offer that the Jews bring their sacrifice to God while remaining in Egypt. In Exodus 8:26, Moses explained to Pharaoh that if the Israelites were to kill these animals before the Egyptians, they would be stoned to death. The Almighty, therefore, used this to test the faithfulness of the Jewish people by commanding them to not only kill Egypt's sacred god, but also to publicly place the lamb's blood on their doorposts for all to see. Only those Israelites who, like Abraham, demonstrated that their fear of God exceeded their fear of the Egyptians, would be deemed worthy to have their homes passed over during the tenth and final plague.

Source
I didn't want to but I had too!

God never wastes an opportunity to reveal Himself to His people. This Rabbi was THE Rabbi of Israel. He grew up in Iraq and was your first rabbi. If God were to reveal this to anyone, it is Rabbi Kaduri.

Israel will continue to hit this stalemate until they turn the other cheek, stop living by the sword and place God where he belongs. God is your King. Christ is His Son. The message is loving-kindness and altruism. This is the fruit of the fig tree. Until the hardness of the heart is fixed, Christ's message will fall on deaf ears. The ENTIRE Bible has built to this crescendo. Works will never save a sinner. We are all sinners. God is the Light, Christ is the Word. Put them together and you get particle and wave, the duality of light. This reality is the reflection of God and man in an image we can comprehend. The light cannot be revealed without the Word (LOGOS). Light is not visible, only what it reflects on. You cannot see light any more than you can see the ocean. You see the surface and the waves only. The light is something much different. The ocean is what is inside.

Originally posted by FeraVerto
reply to post by SuperiorEd

 

I have seen that video many times before. Still I'm not conceived Jesus is the Messiah. It is like telling an Atheist I should be a Christian because this Atheist became a Christian. We'll always continue to hit a stalemate on what Jesus is or not. So, it is no point in arguing.

I'll stop, but faith, hope and love are what matters in the end. Christ died for you. Otherwise, what else is there to pass over? You cannot save yourself. 1 Corinthians 13

My Blog

Originally posted by FeraVerto
reply to post by infojunkie2

 

Thanks for keeping this thread on topic. Christians really want to make this about Jesus anyway they can. Sorry, but it's annoying!

reply to post by SuperiorEd


Sorry, but I do not view the death of Jesus as atonement for sin or prophecy. Go to my other thread and ask about atonement. If you want to.

reply to post by SuperiorEd


I would like to mention Jews do not believe in original sin or human sacrifice. That is pagan influence. Not Jewish!

reply to post by SuperiorEd

Matthew 11:12
"The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard him say it." Then, we read in Romans 11 that Christ will graft in the Gentile nations into the main root. A new tree emerges that is capable of bearing its own fruit. This is comparable to the fig tree bearing fruit without the help of the fig wasp. It has transitioned from a domesticated fig tree to a Parthenocarpic fig tree. Propagated from the cuttings of other fig trees, a parthenocarpic fig tree is capable of spontaneous reproduction, without the aid of the fig wasp.

I find it interesting that graft and propagate are in the bible. Wonder how they got there. Then again we are talking about the romans...